Ubuntu 8.10 Has a Brand New Wallpaper

Mark Shuttleworth promised a new and breathtaking theme for the upcoming Ubuntu 8.10 (Intrepid Ibex)
operating system, but until now we saw a dark and ugly one (NewHuman, also know as DarkRoom) introduced in the first alpha release, which disappeared in Alpha 4 and was replaced by an up-to-date version of the classical Human Murrine theme. Later, in the Beta release, the Hardy Heron wallpaper was finally replaced with a new one... with dots! I mean, come on... what is that? Anyway, Ubuntu 8.10 is getting closer and closer to the final release (October 30th) and there's still no "drastically redesigned" theme for it. Yes, everyone knows that this is not the strong point of the release, and that you can always change the default theme with dozens of other nice ones which can be found here, but I think a new and professional theme will get the Ubuntu OS closer to the land of mature operating systems, such as Mac OS X, and it will have more and more devoted users.

And you know what? It's good to be an Ubuntu tester and see all the progress that the developers make in creating an amazing operating system, and I say this because as of last night (October 10th), they replaced that ugly wallpaper introduced in the beta release with one that really represents the Intrepid Ibex:

Well, this is a good start... don't you think? Mark Shuttleworth stated a month ago that Canonical was looking for a professional themer to create that professional theme everyone expects for the 8.10 release. However, no one knows for sure whether it will be available in time for the final launch. Also, some say that the Ubuntu developers will pick two themes created by the community to accompany the new official theme (if there will be one)!

Among the new features in Ubuntu 8.10 is the glamorous GNOME 2.24 desktop environment, which brings a file manager with tabs, the ability to mount archives, an improved Fast User Switch applet that works in collaboration with Pidgin, a better archive manager that adds support for the ALZ, RZIP, CAB and TAR.7Z file types. Also the "just released" Linux kernel 2.6.27 will be present and as you (probably) already know, it offers out of the box support for many webcams and wireless network devices. Moreover, the GIMP 2.6.1, OpenOffice.org 3.0.0 and Firefox 3.0.3 will also be present in the final release!

How Ubuntu Server Edition Is Used

esterday, Ubuntu's commercial sponsor, Canonical Ltd., initiated a survey with the purpose of finding out in what way exactly Ubuntu Server Edition is being used. Jointly sponsored by Canonical and Red Monk, the study is carried out to learn more about the community organization types within which Ubuntu Server Edition is made useful.

Today, Ubuntu is one of the most popular Linux distributions, with fans all over the world, designed for laptop, desktop, thin client and server alike, and putting together the best functionality, while trying to be as user-friendly as possible. With a 6-month release cycle, Ubuntu is an open source, free Linux product (and will always be that way), and can be easily downloaded from mirrors spread all over the world.

Through this survey, a large number of users will be asked by the Ubuntu Server community to share the experience they've had so far with it. This is the first time that the Ubuntu Server team is making such a large scale attempt to get some info on how their product is being used, although, not long ago, a similar action was taken by Canonical, aimed at those requesting cost-free server CDs.

Here are the main improvements that will hopefully be operated by using the insight provided by this survey:

· Improve future product releases;
· Prioritize feature requests;
· Guide partnerships to add technologies;
· Drive the focus at the next Ubuntu Developer Summit in December 2008.

About Canonical

Headquartered in London, Canonical is devoted to distribution, development and making the world know about open source products, and also to making sure the community has the tools and support it needs. It achieves these purposes by:

· delivering Ubuntu, one of the world's most popular and efficient, free software platform;
· making sure it's available to everyone;
· supporting it with professional service and quality engineering offerings;
· encouraging the perpetual growth and development of the free software community.

Article source: Softpedia